Refer to the voters a five-year local option tax levy for the November 4, 2025 election to maintain safe parks, nature, affordable recreation through 5-year levy
WHEREAS, Portland’s parks, natural areas, trees, and recreational opportunities improve public health, are essential public assets, add beauty to our city, connect people to place, nature, self, and community, and are a fundamental part of what makes Portland a livable, vibrant city; and
WHEREAS, Portland’s park system is managed by Portland Parks & Recreation (PP&R) and includes 11,677 total acres, 7,895 acres of which are natural areas, across 5 watersheds, 156 developed parks, 12 community and art centers, 11 community pools, 1.2 million trees in parks, and more; and
WHEREAS, Portland’s residents treasure and care for this legacy, regularly citing parks as a reason they choose to live in Portland, and value equitable access to the spaces and programs that are a part of our park system for all Portlanders; and
WHEREAS, in 2020, Portland voters passed a five-year local option levy (2020 Parks Levy) to support park and recreation operations; and
WHEREAS, the 2020 Parks Levy is a critical source of PP&R’s operational revenues; and
WHEREAS, an independent audit found that the 2020 Parks Levy complied with voter commitments, and that levy dollars were clearly tracked using strong financial systems; and
WHEREAS, the proposed $1.40 levy (2025 Parks Levy) would include $1.37 for park and recreation operations, and $0.03 for capital maintenance projects; and
WHEREAS, the $1.37 for operations is forecasted to sustain the levels of operational service provided to Portlanders, at levels included in the FY 25-26 budget; and
WHEREAS, a new levy would include $0.03 of the rate for capital maintenance projects that maintain our park system, such as repair of bathrooms and playgrounds, enabling the City to address critical capital maintenance needs in each District; and
WHEREAS, parks and natural areas are essential community assets; and
WHEREAS, a new five-year levy would help PP&R meet service level goals, community and City Council expectations; and
WHEREAS, a new levy would help keep parks, playgrounds and restrooms clean and safe for all Portlanders, remove litter and hazardous waste; and
WHEREAS, a new levy would help ensure currently-planned new parks or park assets receive appropriate operational funding, including the planned new North Portland Aquatic Center, Old Town and Creston Skateparks, and Wilkes Headwaters; and
WHEREAS, Portlanders value trees, and trees provide essential benefits by improving air quality, reducing heat island effects, decreasing heating and cooling costs, sequestering carbon, increasing property values, and more, but today, the benefits of our urban tree canopy are not equally distributed; and
WHEREAS, Portland’s 7,895 acres of natural areas need sufficient resources to preserve habitat, prevent wildfires, improve water quality, and protect native plantings from invasive species; and
WHEREAS, a new levy would provide continued resources to protect natural areas, rivers, wetlands, natural features, and improve the health and equitable distribution of our tree canopy, enable PP&R to proactively maintain existing park trees, and plant new trees each year in parks and natural areas with low canopy; and
WHEREAS, Portlanders value access to community and art centers, pools, and programs, and a new levy would provide resources to continue supporting park programs, operationally supporting keeping facilities open and programmed; and
WHEREAS, a new levy would support free and discount options for recreational programming to low-income Portlanders so that all Portlanders can access these opportunities; and
WHEREAS, the City of Portland recognizes that strengthening partnerships with the private sector, philanthropic community, volunteers, and grassroots organizations is essential to fostering resilient, accessible, and high-quality parks and community spaces that reflect the diverse needs and aspirations of all Portland residents; and
WHEREAS, PP&R values partnerships and volunteers, and through this new levy, will strengthen its volunteer and partnership program and approach; and
WHEREAS, PP&R will produce annual reports on how levy funds are being spent, including performance metrics and financial data about bureau service delivery and volunteer and partnership levels, and regularly engage in sharing information with and receiving feedback from City Council about the 2025 Parks Levy and its funded services; and
WHEREAS, PP&R shall, as part of the annual budget process, describe to Council the approximate percentage of its operations, and number of FTE, which will be funded by levy resources; and
WHEREAS, on or before December 31, 2025, PP&R leadership in collaboration with stakeholders will submit key performance indicators (KPIs) for City Council approval. These KPIs will form the Parks Levy performance dashboard; and
WHEREAS, a community member oversight committee will review Levy spending and report to the Bureau and City Council on transparency, fiscal accountability, and adherence to ballot language, and produce annual reports; and
WHEREAS, City Council recognizes that the Parks and Recreation system has an extensive backlog of capital maintenance needs, and the 2025 Parks Levy will begin to address these needs but will only be able to address a small fraction of these needs; the Council will continue to work with PP&R and community on a long-range financial plan, will explore options for a major maintenance bond measure, and will direct the Office of Government Relations to work in the Legislature to clarify authority for the use of System Development Charges for major capital maintenance projects, and will pursue, as appropriate, policy changes in the City of Portland that clarify and prioritize the use of System Development Charge for extension of useful life or restoration of existing capital assets; and
WHEREAS, City Council will adopt this long-range financial plan by the end of Fiscal Year 2027-28; and
WHEREAS, this Council commits to following Financial policy 2.03, passed in 2015 but not followed by many previous Councils, which states “At least fifty-percent (50%) of General Fund discretionary revenue that exceeds budgeted beginning balance (adjusted for the difference in encumbrance carryovers and Council-authorized carryovers from the prior fiscal year) will be set aside during the Fall budget monitoring process for allocation to infrastructure maintenance or replacement in the subsequent budget process. This funding shall be allocated for projects relating to emergency preparedness, parks and recreation, and transportation.’
WHEREAS, without a 2025 Parks Levy, PP&R’s revenues are insufficient to deliver needed services and outcomes to the community, to provide an equitable and affordable park system, and to meet rising internal costs without service reductions; and
WHEREAS, if approved, the levy tax rate would be $1.40 per $1,000 of assessed value, about $26 per month for a median residential property owner; and
WHEREAS, if approved, the 2025 Parks Levy would raise an estimated $84 million in the first year to support operations of community centers and pools, continue recreation programming, maintain existing parks and natural area services, expand the urban tree canopy, and more; and
WHEREAS, if approved, the 2025 Parks Levy would raise an estimated $2 million in the first year to support capital maintenance projects; and
WHEREAS, if the 2025 Parks Levy is not approved by voters, fewer park services would be provided; and
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Council submits an Act, attached hereto as Exhibit A, entitled: “A Measure directing a five-year local option ad valorem property tax levy within the City of Portland at a rate of $1.40 per $1,000 of assessed value, outside certain constitutional limitations, commencing in fiscal year 2026-27, for parks and recreation purposes. $1.37 of the rate will be for operations, $0.03 of the rate will be for capital maintenance projects,” and hereby submits to the legal voters of the City of Portland, Oregon, for their adoption or rejection at the election in the City of Portland, Multnomah County, Clackamas County, and Washington County, to be held on November 4, 2025. Each voter who votes upon said proposed measure shall vote “yes” or “no” in the space indicated for such vote on the City ballot at said election; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Council submits the ballot title, question, and summary for the November 4, 2025 election ballot, as shown in the attached Exhibit B; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Council directs the Auditor to publish the ballot title as shown in Exhibit B in accordance with City Code; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Council directs the Auditor to submit the explanatory statement attached as Exhibit C to the Multnomah, Clackamas, and Washington County elections offices for publication in each county’s voters’ pamphlet; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Auditor is directed to forward to the Multnomah, Clackamas, and Washington County elections offices all material necessary to place this measure on the November 4, 2025 election ballot; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that PP&R estimates that it could cost up to $700k to place the levy on the November 4, 2025 ballot. The bureau may additionally have some costs associated with providing information after the ballot measure is referred. The General Fund will pay this cost, whether out of the Bureau’s ongoing General Fund allocation or a separate allocation during the Fall Technical Adjustment Ordinance; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Auditor of the City of Portland is hereby authorized to incur expenses, if any, necessary and incident to the conduct of the November 4, 2025 Special Election; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this 2025 Parks Levy will fund 1.0 FTE staff position for the duration of the Parks Levy lifecycle, dedicated to financial partnerships and revenue generation, in an effort to achieve additional stable funding streams for Park’s recreation programming, parks, and facilities. This includes developing donor network, local business partnerships, and opportunities for public/private partnerships. This position will operate as a resource multiplier and cultivate new revenues for the park and recreation system; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the $0.03 for capital maintenance projects is intended to be distributed between the four Council Districts during the five-year timeframe of the 2025 Parks Levy. Annually, the Director of PP&R will prepare lists of capital maintenance needs and capital replacement opportunities, along with annual estimates for available funds each fiscal year. City Council members in each District will recommend which projects to advance each year in their District based on available funds. Capital maintenance project decisions for Levy Funds will be included, along with other capital maintenance projects, for City Council approval in their adopted budget, and, where appropriate, System Development Charge use will continue to include capacity improvement projects that extend the useful life or restores the capacity value of existing Parks capital assets; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that, upon passage of this levy by Portland voters, Council will make an appropriation in the annual budget from the Parks Local Option Levy Fund to the Children’s Investment Fund for changes in revenue caused by compression from the Parks Local Option Levy under Oregon property tax law.
Official Record (Efiles)
Impact Statement
Purpose of Proposed Legislation and Background Information
- In July 2020, City Council referred an operating Parks Levy to the November 2020 ballot, which was passed with support from 64% of voters.
- This legislation will refer a $1.40 per $1,000 Assessed Value five-year local option tax levy to voters, an increase from the $0.80 rate of the current 2020 Parks Local Option Levy. The current Parks Levy will expire at the end of Fiscal Year 2025-26, if not renewed. As proposed, the new levy at a higher rate than the expiring levy would start collections in Fiscal Year 2026-27, enabling seamless receipts of revenue and delivery of services.
- If passed, the levy would raise approximately $86M in the first year, with an average of $91M raised per year. This rate is forecasted to be sufficient to sustain FY 25-26 park service levels over the next five-year term (FY 2026-27 through FY 2030-31).
- The proposed legislation will begin to address an imbalance between the operational service levels City Council and Portlanders have identified for the park and recreation system to deliver, and funding levels provided through historic general fund allocations and fee revenues alone that are inadequate to deliver them.
Financial and Budgetary Impacts
- This operating and capital levy would not incur long-term debt payments, or purchase properties resulting in long term obligations.
- This action does not amend the budget but should reduce PP&R’s operating budget’s reliance on new General Fund and prevent service reductions during the five-year levy timeframe. The anticipated levy receipts will first be reflected in PP&R’s FY 2026-27 budget.
- Parks Levy resources would be utilized to reimburse for expenditures associated with delivering services as outlined in the ballot language. In addition to these direct expenditures, the only administrative costs are for General Fund Overhead and reimbursement of compression impacts to the Portland Children’s Levy.
- PP&R estimates that it could cost up to $700k to place the levy on the November, 2025 ballot. The bureau may additionally have some costs associated with providing information after the ballot measure is referred. The General Fund will pay this cost, whether out of the Bureau’s ongoing General Fund allocation or a separate allocation during the Fall Technical Adjustment Ordinance.
- The levy would cover anticipated new O&M requests associated with building new parks and assets to provide a safe and clean park system that equitably serves all Portlanders.
- The levy would set aside approximately 2.1% of receipts ($0.03 per $1,000 Assessed Value) to fund capital and operational maintenance projects. This is estimated to produce $2 M a year. Industry good practice levels of investment in capital maintenance are 2-3% of the replacement value of the system. For the PP&R system, using a middle point of 2.5%, that equates to a target of $60 million per year investment in capital maintenance. PP&R currently receives approximately $5 million per year from the General Fund for capital maintenance, leaving a $55 million annual gap between actual funding for capital maintenance and a good practice target level. $2 million per year would fund approximately 3.5% of that gap.
- The levy would offer continued support for existing programming in the FY 2025-26 budget.
- The levy would continue to support the Access Discount program without a heavy reliance on fee revenues to deliver recreation programs, allowing equity and affordability to be centered for Portlanders living on low incomes.
- As forecast factors change during the five years, adjustments would be made through annual budget processes based on any changes to revenues or expenditures.
- The $1.40 per $1,000 of Assessed Value is expected to raise approximately $86M in the first year, with an average of $91M raised per year. Over the five-year levy, total estimated receipts are $456M. Portland Parks & Recreation commissioned Portland State University Northwest Economic Research Center (NERC) to forecast revenue and compression impacts of a Parks Levy at different rates. This amount incorporates expected compression under Oregon Measure 50 and assumes annual transfers to the Portland Children’s Levy (on average, $867,670 per year) to mitigate the impact of the levy on that Fund.
- The legislation would financially support maintaining existing positions, though there may be position reductions, increases, or changes through the five-year term. Demographics of the staffing changes are not known at this time, as recruitments or reductions would be dependent on each year’s annual budget.
- Funds from the levy may be utilized for IAs, IGAs, MOUs, grants, contracts or contract amendments during its five-year timeframe. This legislation is not being enacted specifically for the purpose of supporting IAs, IGAs, MOUs, grants, contracts, or contract amendments.
- While there may be staffing shifts as operational funding is implemented during its five-year term, there are no specific anticipated staffing or resources associated with collecting or expending this legislation aside from one position anticipated to be added to support partnerships and volunteers. If the referred ballot measure is passed by voters, this legislation will reduce anticipated reduction of existing staff.
Economic and Real Estate Development Impacts
- PP&R has shared financial and service level forecasts and discussed renewal replacement of the Parks Levy at community meetings, including at City Council Parks Levy work sessions (June 2 and June 24, 2025), with the Parks Levy Oversight Committee, Parks Board, and Urban Forestry Commission, and with a variety of interested community and partner groups. Portlanders have opportunities to provide input on desired service levels through a variety of forums, including the 2024 Community Needs Survey, and ongoing community engagement tabling and focus groups.
- PP&R has continued to hear from community stakeholders about the importance of delivering operational services that would be funded by this proposed legislation. This includes engagement related to Healthy Parks, Healthy Portland, PP&R’s ongoing Listening & Learning program, and testimony provided during budget listening sessions. Additionally, PP&R held a task force series of conversations in 2022 to review both the bureau’s funding position, and funding options. The task force included members of the business community, as well as community organizations. Funding operations through a Parks Levy was prioritized as an action to pursue by all 12 members of the 2022 task force, with none recommending operational levy funding be deprioritized. Conversely, more than half of task force members recommended deprioritizing exploring cell phone, transient lodging, payroll, or capital gains taxes to fund delivery of park and recreation services.
- Business and/or development projects may be impacted by costs associated with this legislation, which increases the current property tax rates for park and recreation services from $0.80 per $1,000 assessed value to $1.40 per $1,000 assessed value. The $1.40 rate will cost a forecasted FY 2026-27 median commercial property (median Assessed Value forecasted at $313,810) approximately $439 per year, or $37 per month. The 2020 Parks Local Option Levy this is replacing is a $0.80 per $1,000 Assessed Value levy, which costs the median commercial property approximately $251 per year, or $21 per month.
- Business and/or development projects might experience negative effects from lower park operational service levels, forecasted to be nearly 50% reduced, if a levy does not pass.
Property tax rates for Fiscal Year 2024-25 for the City of Portland (tax code area 201) and a sample of other Oregon cities are shared below. The renewal of the Parks Local Option Levy at the proposed higher rate would increase the current local option rate by $0.60 (not taking into account any increase for the FPDR levy). Under the Oregon property tax system, property taxes are calculated and paid on a property-by-property basis, therefore the table below does not reflect actual tax rates applied to properties under the limitations of Oregon Measure 5.
- This legislation would increase the levy property tax rate. The $1.40 rate will cost a forecasted FY 2026-27 median single-family property (median Assessed Value forecasted at $221,600) approximately $310 per year, or $26 per month. The 2020 Parks Local Option Levy this is replacing is a $0.80 per $1,000 Assessed Value levy, which costs the median single-family property approximately $177 per year, or $15 per month.
- PP&R’s operational service levels are forecasted to be sustained through this increased rate, and better maintained parks with community desired programming may positively impact business competitiveness, because surveys indicate parks are important to Portlanders. A 2019 Portland Insights survey found that across the board, respondents’ favorite part of where they live in Portland is access to outdoor and natural areas. Almost all respondents (97%) visit the City’s parks and natural areas. Furthermore, 70% of Portlanders were satisfied with the safety and cleanliness of Portland’s parks. A 2024 Vibrant Communities voter poll found that 79% of voters felt parks were important or very important to their quality of life.
- Potential adverse impacts to affordability could be mitigated by investments that make access to parks and nature affordable, including maintaining Access Discount program, and providing free or reduced access to space for community partner and organization programming. This is reflected in specific proposed Parks Levy commitment to reduce cost as a barrier to access.
- Continued engagement from diverse community members on advisory boards like the Parks Board, Urban Forestry Commission, and Parks Levy Oversight Committee will provide input on program and budgetary development.
Community Impacts and Community Involvement
PP&R has engaged with, and will continue to engage with, many community stakeholders and partners in developing a vision and service level targets for the park and recreation system, documented in its Healthy Parks, Healthy Portland strategic framework. Community members and community organizations have been involved annually on the Budget Advisory Committee, and serve on advisory committees including the Parks Board, Urban Forestry Commission, and Parks Levy Oversight Committee.
The Bureau has heard, and continues to hear, from members of the public about concerns
with current, and forecasted, levels of funding and desires for sustaining operational service levels. Additionally, PP&R periodically surveys Portlanders to understand their priorities and needs for the park system. An update to the PP&R Community Needs Survey, last conducted in 2017, was conducted in 2024 and will inform future operational service implementation.
The levy would increase property tax rates, and we know that burden is greatest on homeowners earning low incomes. The levy would center equity as its focus and bring benefits to those most impacted, including:
- Daily care and maintenance of neighborhood parks and natural areas.
- Supporting free and reduced cost programming;
- Increasing equity of tree canopy coverage across the City by planting trees and doing proactive tree maintenance for all park trees; and
- Providing new operations and maintenance funding so that non-levy resources, like System Development Charges, can continue to add new parks and new park amenities in areas that have low, or no, services today.
Members of the Portland Parks Board, Portland Parks Foundation, Parks Levy Oversight Committee, Portland Parks Alliance, and other community partner groups and individuals will likely be testifying.
100% Renewable Goal
This action may slightly increase the City’s total energy usage, as it would support operations and maintenance for existing parks and natural areas, as well as for new parksand park facilities planned and under construction. A focus of the levy would be protecting water quality, natural areas, performing wildfire prevention activities, and increasing health and amount of tree canopy, along with capital maintenance projects.
Economic and Real Estate Development Analysis
Analysis provided by Prosper Portland
Overall, the EIS statement is strong and addresses the core components expected of such a document. It effectively outlines three key elements that convey the economic impact of the proposed levy, and we are supportive of PP&R moving forward with the language as currently drafted.
A) You describe in detail the extensive public outreach PP&R conducted in developing this proposal, and how that feedback shaped the proposal.
B) You detail how the levy would affect Portland residences and businesses, and how Portland’s property taxes compare with other large Oregon cities.
C) While discussing the degree to which taxes would increase in Portland, you also discuss the critical role Parks play in Portland’s quality of life.
We recommend that a third-party analysis could also assess the broader economic impacts—beyond the individual-level effects already included in the current draft.
Document History
Document number: 2025-281
President's referral: City Council